Dagger's Edge (Shadow series) by Anne Logston Read Free Book Online Page B

the crack.
    It was still dark outside, but the temple was now brightly lit by the light globes and the ceremonial candles. Ordinarily, from her vantage point just behind and to one side of the altar, Jael would have had a perfectly unobstructed view; however, at the moment her field of vision was occluded by the broad backside of Ankaras, High Priest of the Temple of Baaros. Under his direction, the two lesser priests, Tanis, and four other acolytes were making final preparations, lighting the ceremonial candles and the light globes, placing herbs and fresh flowers carefully on the altar, and laying the ingredients for the summoning spell handy in small crystal bowls and flasks. Tanis, who was senior among the acolytes, was pouring scented oil—pungently aromatic to Jael’s sensitive nose— with exaggerated care into small gold bowls painstakingly set at particular locations on the sprinkled designs. Ankaras looked on, mumbling under his breath—or perhaps chanting, Jael couldn’t be sure, since she couldn’t see his face.
    One of the acolytes apparently did something not to the High Priest’s satisfaction, for Ankaras shook the frightened lad fiercely, berating him for some time on the necessity of doing everything just right in a summoning. Tanis went quietly about correcting whatever the young acolyte had done wrong while Ankaras continued his lecture, but the High Priest was interrupted anyway by the arrival of the first worshippers.
    The temple filled quickly, for dawn was rapidly approaching. Tanis and the other acolytes made sure that all the worshippers were seated, while Ankaras puttered with things out of Jael’s view.
    At last Ankaras seemed satisfied with the preparations, and he gestured the acolytes to their places. As the first dim rays of dawn began to show through the windows, Ankaras began the chant, the acolytes taking it up. The worshippers were silent, rapt, as the rite continued.
    Jael shook her head, wincing. The ritual caused a tickling ache somewhere inside her, the irritating sensation growing as the chant grew in power. Ankaras was using the carefully positioned ingredients now, making ritual passes with his rod, tracing complex designs in the air, and throwing pinches of this and that into the brazier. Jael could feel power gathering around the altar, huge power, and the irritating sensation within her became almost unbearable. If only he’d hurry up and finish what he was doing!
    Abruptly Ankaras’s hand fumbled slightly, jarring one of the bowls at the corner of the altar. Unseen, a small splash of liquid spilled out, dripping from the corner of the altar onto the edge of the powder design on the floor and breaking the smooth curve of the circle.
    A rather greasy gray smoke began to flow from the brazier toward the statue of Baaros behind the altar. As the cloud of smoke grew in size, it seemed to flow over the statue as if exploring its contours. The smoke gathered again at the base of the statue, and a murmur of amazement went through the watchers as an image began to form. Ankaras, his hands shaking slightly, continued the chant and the ritual passes, and the image slowly solidified. For one brief instant, Jael thought the image blurred and shifted slightly, then settled into Baaros’s placid features, although its eyes glittered with sharp intelligence.
    Ankaras and his lesser priests and acolytes dropped to their knees, and the worshippers fell silent. Then Ankaras rose stiffly and turned to face the congregation.
    “Lord Baaros speaks to me as he will at the Grand Summoning speak to you all,” Ankaras boomed, his voice deeper and harsher than it had been before. “Three are the pillars of His temple, three are His priests, and three are the signs of His omnipotence He sends to warn the unbelievers.”
    Jael stifled a chuckle in her hiding place. It was a well-known fact that the reason that the Temple of Baaros had only three priests was the same reason that it now occupied